Small Hands

Today on Facebook, I posted that I really wished that I could find my sheet music for Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in C# Minor. I lost it a long time ago, so I was really struggling this morning to play it. I didn’t get far – a couple lines at best. I could hear it in my head, but I couldn’t translate it to actual notes on the keyboard.

Fortunately, my friends with the Chattanooga Symphony Orchestra totally came through for me with a link to a copy of the music. (Here it is if you’re interested).

Thanks, Kayoko!!

I commented that I could never hit every note in those 4-note chords, but I played it anyway.

Music – it’s the best therapy for anyone – especially when you’re SUPPOSED to play at quadruple forte!

So many composers write, or have written, music that is super difficult, which is why every day piano players – like me – have access to simplified versions, or the alternative: i.e. we just don’t play the original in public. 🙂

Rachmaninoff must have had huge hands. We know Liszt definitely did. PLUS – Liszt was a true piano virtuoso and he wrote music that he himself could play. He didn’t write music for every day pianists and heck – he didn’t always write music for every day CONCERT pianists. One has to be rather amazing to play what he wrote because he was in a class all his own.

Back to Rachmaninoff though, his music for the piano is sublime. It’s gorgeous and even if you’re not of concert pianist quality, it’s wonderful to play. Sometimes, I wish my fingers, that on a good day can reach an octave and a third (if I really work at it) could consistently hit those 4-note chords.

The chords are huge. My hands…are not.

That’s OK, I keep playing anyway!

On that same FB thread, another friend of mine shared a great video that made me feel better. Take a look.